Timeless Vows: Five Tales of Love (Timeless Tales Book 4)

by Ruth A. Casie

  He made himself take a step back and put her room key in his pocket. He was going to figure out who had invited herself into his room and make sure they never did it again. Then he was going to come back.

  He wasn’t going to let Davina run away this time.

  Davina was going to smash the telephone three inches from her head into tiny, tiny bits. The shrill scream amplified her headache into an earthquake. She reached out blindly, fumbling around until she found the receiver.

  “Hello,” she croaked.

  “Dr. Hobbs, this is the front desk. We have a hotel guest who’s experiencing chest pain. He’s refused to go to a hospital, but another guest has convinced him to let you look at him. Would you mind?”

  Any other day she would have been happy to. Today, even her hair hurt. How much had she drank last night? “Where is he?”

  “Here in the lobby.”

  “I’ll be there in a few minutes.” She hung up the phone, rolled over, and came face-to-face with Drew.

  She sucked in a breath so fast it cut her throat to ribbons. “Holy shit.”

  “Who was that?” he asked.

  “What the hell are you doing in my bed?” Had she drank enough to invite him to her room? Wait, she was in her underwear and under the covers. He was fully clothed and appeared to have slept on top of the covers.

  “You were pretty unstable on your feet last night, so I carried you back here. Unfortunately, that was when the alcohol caught up to you and you started throwing up. You passed out in the bathroom, so I cleaned you up a little and tucked you into bed.”

  “And you invited yourself, too?” It came out a screech.

  “No, I was scared you might vomit while you were out cold, so I made the decision to stay. How’s your hangover?” His tone was concerned, solicitous, even kind.

  She narrowed her eyes. “I hate you.”

  “That bad, huh?”

  “Get out of my room.”

  “I didn’t invite Tammy to my room last night.”

  Memory flooded in—the flowers and chocolate she’d decided to return to him, only to find the stacked brunette waiting for Drew in a flimsy lace outfit that didn’t cover anything.

  “I threw the flowers on her.” She laughed.

  “Yeah.” He smiled. “I wish I had been there to see it.” He rolled off the bed and onto his feet. “If this keeps up I’m going to charge her with harassment.”

  Davina couldn’t tell if he was joking or not. “Yeah, whatever. I’ve got to go. Someone might be having a heart attack in the lobby.” She swung her feet to the floor and levered herself to her feet.

  Drew’s eyebrows rose even as his eyes traveled her body. “They call for an ambulance?”

  “Hey, I’m up here,” she said, pointing at her face.

  He didn’t look the least bit sorry as he met her gaze.

  “No. Whoever it is, they’re refusing to go.”

  He glanced at her breasts. “You going looking like that?”

  God, he was such a guy. She shook her head and went into the bathroom. It didn’t take long to use the toilet, brush her teeth, and stick her head in the sink to get her hair wet. When she came out Drew was gone.

  About time. Waking up next to him had been a shock. For a moment she’d been taken back in time to those mornings when she woke next to him while they were dating. She’d kiss him awake and make long, slow love, the pleasure exquisite.

  Loss twisted her stomach into an even tighter, painful knot.

  Those days were over.

  Davina got dressed, grabbed the first-aid kit she always traveled with, and made her way to the lobby.

  Drew was already there, asking people to move back.

  He looked up and saw her. “Please, folks, the doctor is here. Make a little more room for her to work.”

  The half dozen people stepped aside, giving her an unobstructed view of an older man sitting in an armchair.

  His face was pale and coated in a sheen of sweat. His lips were tinged with blue, almost as if he were wearing lipstick. His breathing sounded labored without a stethoscope and he rubbed his left arm like it hurt.

  She approached him, and Drew got the crowd to move back another couple of feet. “Hello, I’m Dr. Hobbs. What’s your name, sir?”

  He huffed and puffed as he replied, “Richard Zimmerman.”

  “How long have you been experiencing pain and shortness of breath?”

  “About twenty minutes.”

  She pulled out her stethoscope. “I’m going to listen to your chest, okay?”

  “Okay, but I don’t want to go to a hospital.”

  Drew shushed everyone without making any of their audience mad. Now that was talent.

  Davina listened to the man’s chest. His breathing was very tight and his heart rate was odd. The beat wasn’t steady—there were missing beats, or they were cut short. “Richard, you’re going to a hospital. I’m afraid you’ve got no choice. What you do get to choose is how you’re going to go. Either you go in an ambulance or a body bag.”

  Richard’s eyes widened. “It’s that bad?”

  She nodded. “Yes, it is. So which do you want?”

  He closed his eyes. “Ambulance.”

  A few feet away, Drew ordered the ambulance with his cell phone. “ETA, ten minutes.”

  Davina spent the next few minutes asking Richard questions about his medical history, medications, and if he’d experienced these symptoms before.

  When the paramedics arrived, she gave them a concise report and suggested treatment.

  “Why can’t you just order them to give the medication?” Drew asked as one of the paramedics called in to the hospital to get permission to administer the medication Davina suggested.

  “I don’t have ordering privileges at this hospital, and I’m from out of state.” She put her stethoscope away. “It would be like you doing what a sheriff from another state told you to do.”

  “Huh, I never thought about it that way.”

  “Plus, I’m a coroner, not an ER doctor. They might have different medication regimens in practice here than I know about, or have kept up with.”

  “Why a coroner?” He scratched his head. “You’re good with people. Why would you choose to work with the dead?”

  “Because I’m too much of a people person.”

  He scratched his head. “Explain that to me.”

  “I struggle with maintaining an emotional distance between patients and myself. I have no problem with the dead. Someone has to speak for them, discover if foul play, neglect, or carelessness was involved in their death. I do that. But with living patients, I got too emotionally invested in all of them. It was tearing me apart even during my residency.” She ground to a halt. Why had she told him all that? She cleared her throat and finished with, “My mentor suggested I try the morgue for a while and that’s where I discovered my place. I like solving a puzzling death.”

  “Yeah, you always were a softy at heart,” he muttered.

  “Has your curiosity been satisfied?” she asked.

  “I suppose.”

  “Good.” She turned and walked back to her room.

  He followed her. The man was worse than a puppy.

  She stopped at the door before unlocking it. “What now?”

  “We need to talk.”

  He’d always been persistent; the past few years had just put a shine on it. “Back to that, are we?”

  “I’m not going to stop asking,” he said, taking a half step closer, crowding her against the door.

  Anger straightened her back and she unlocked the door. The room looked the same as when she left it. The bed in disarray, her clothes from the night before thrown on the desk chair.

  She turned and put her hands on her hips. “Okay, now’s your chance. Talk.”

  Drew ran a hand threw his hair and looked at the floor for a couple of seconds. Finally, he met her gaze with a rueful one of his own. “I’m sorry.” He sighed. “I’m sorry for not makin
g it clear six years ago that the girl in the shower wasn’t there on my invitation. I’m sorry for not chasing after you to explain, even though I was buck naked. I’m sorry for being an idiot and kissing another girl to find out if what we had was as good, as special, as I thought.”

  Every word out of his mouth cut her heart to ribbons all over again. “You weren’t sure what we had was special?” She’d known it from the moment they met.

  “I admit I was stupid. I had all these friends telling me that one girl was as good as another, and I was so angry that you didn’t trust me, I decided they were right.”

  Every word he said hit her like blows to the body, robbing her of breath, strength, and the ability to think.

  “They said I didn’t need you, I just needed a warm body, but I found out the hard way that they were wrong.”

  The knot in her stomach twisted tighter, the pain making her eyes water with tears she refused to shed while he was watching. “That’s really dumb.”

  “Yeah, I knew it the second I kissed that other girl. There was nothing there. Nothing at all. When I kissed you, I stepped into paradise.” He stared at her with eyes hot with need, his fists clenching and unclenching.

  He wanted her.

  Her own body responded to the need stamped on him, her heart rate and breathing increasing. “You should go now.”

  “We’re not done.” His voice was rough with desire.

  “You’re forgiven. There,” she said, backing up a step. “You’ve apologized, I’ve forgiven you, we’re done.”

  One corner of his mouth kicked up and he took a step toward her. “I don’t want to go.”

  She retreated. “You should.”

  He followed her. “I want to kiss you again.”

  Her breathing stuttered. “That’s not a good idea.”

  He tilted his head to one side. “Why not? Because you’re afraid you’ll like it?”

  Her back hit the wall next to the bathroom. “Yes.” Hell, she’d love it.

  He put his hands on either side of her face and leaned down until his lips were only a couple of inches from her own. “I’ve been starving for a taste of your kiss for six years.” His breath came in pants and his pupils were huge. “Please.”

  She opened her mouth to say no, but she hesitated, remembering the pleasure his kisses had given her.

  Big mistake. His eyes flared and he covered her lips with his own.

  She moaned into his mouth as his tongue tangled with hers. So good. Better, hotter than she remembered. Sensation and need arrowed through her body, making her ache for more than a kiss.

  His shoulders were hard with muscle beneath her hands, his legs thicker and harder than before, and when he thrust one thigh between her legs, she found herself rocking against it.

  He shifted, his hands on her waist to lift her up on that thigh, while he rubbed his erection against her lower belly.

  Her breath caught. His cock was a long, luscious length that had filled her until she’d been afraid he wouldn’t fit. The ache between her legs intensified until all she could think about was finding relief.

  One of his big hands cupped her breast and she couldn’t keep the moan from escaping her throat. His thumb found her nipple and teased it with little touches, as if he were asking permission.

  She put her hand over his and pressed his palm against her flesh.

  When she let go, he used his index finger and thumb to pinch and roll her nipple, sending a whip of pleasure so intense through her body that she jerked.

  Her hands pulled at his shirt as she kissed him frantically, desperate to feel his skin against her own, his hands on her body, his cock inside her.

  He pulled back and closed his eyes. “Davina?”

  She didn’t want questions—she wanted him. Now.

  She put her hand on his erection and squeezed.

  He lost it.

  His hands yanked at her shirt and sent it flying as soon as it cleared her head. Her bra lasted even less time, but he stopped to stare at her breasts. They were fuller now than in college, overfilling his hands as he cupped them with a reverence that had her swallowing down a whimper.

  He ducked his head and put his mouth on one nipple and she keened aloud how much she loved it. She wrapped one leg around his and tried to climb him, but he was too tall.

  He picked her up and carried her to the bed, not letting her go or pausing in the exquisite attention he was giving to her breast.

  Then he switched to the other breast and she couldn’t stop the sounds emerging from her throat. Her hands tried to get his pants off, but she was unable to manage anything beyond hanging on to him as he brought her to the edge of orgasm with his mouth and hand on her nipples alone.

  He finally moved from her breast to her neck, nipping and sucking his way up to her ear. His hands pulled her pants and panties off, his palms and fingers stroking her butt before dipping between her legs to tease the hypersensitive entrance to her body.

  “Drew, please, I need…” She couldn’t finish, couldn’t get the words out through a throat that was already too tight.

  “Are you sure, Dav? God, please be sure because I don’t think I’ll be able to stop once I get inside you.” He rested his forehead against her own and growled, “It’s been so fucking long.”

  “N…now, Drew. Now.”

  He moved, shifted, the feel of denim replaced by hot skin, and then he was there, the head of his cock pushing inside of her.

  She arched her back as he continued his slow penetration, wanting to take all of him.

  His body shook as he finally seated himself inside her. “Holy shit.” Then he moved and she stopped thinking altogether. There was only the slide of her skin against his, his cock stroking the ache inside her, tightening it into a ball of pleasure, while he muttered unintelligible words in her ear.

  He changed his angle slightly and hit a spot inside her that detonated that tight ball of nirvana until it burned through her whole body, setting her on fire.

  When she came back to herself, he’d stopped his deep thrusts in favor of little flexes of his pelvis that served to tease all the nerve endings inside her. How was he doing that?

  He hovered over her, nose to nose. “Look at me.”

  She opened her eyes. And saw an emotional volcano about to erupt inside the normally calm and controlled man she thought she knew.

  He cared. He cared so much it was radiating off him like a nuclear meltdown. It melted the ice fortress she’d erected around her heart all those years ago.

  “I’m not letting you run away this time, Davina.” His voice was deep and dark. “You can try if you want, but I’m not going to let you get away.”

  “Drew, I…” Her protest died as he pulled out slowly, so slowly, then thrust back in hard and fast. He did it again and again, until he pushed her into another orgasm.

  He followed and as she came down off the high, she realized what he’d been chanting in her ear.

  I love you.

  Over and over.

  Holy shit. He blinked a couple of times to be sure he was where he thought he was, and it wasn’t all a dream. Balls deep inside Davina, her arms around him and her breasts pillowing his chest.

  Her breath shook as she exhaled, her face glowing, her expression shifting from awe to surprise. He leaned down and set his lips against hers gently, giving her room and opportunity to turn away if she wanted. He kept the kiss soft, a tease and a taste of what they’d just done—were still doing.

  He sucked on her bottom lip, nipped its ripe flesh and soothed it with his tongue. He pulled back a fraction and she followed, chasing him.

  He took over, igniting the kiss into something explosive, shifting so he could pet her breasts the way he knew she liked, making her moan and hook one leg over his.

  Just like that he was hard again.

  He began moving in her, slowly, savoring every moment of every stroke, wallowing in the swell of pleasure that rose as he picked up the pace and str
ength of his thrusts.

  He’d missed this, missed her. The smell of her hair, the satin of her skin, and the music of her sighs and moans as he gave her every bit of himself.

  They both came again. This time, when he kissed her slow and easy, he shifted to his side, taking her with him, holding her close.

  She clutched at him and he reveled in her acceptance. Until he realized she was crying.

  “Davina? What’s wrong?” He hadn’t held back, given her all he had. “Shit, did I hurt you?”

  His questions seemed to make her cry harder.

  “Davina? Talk to me. Please.”

  She shook her head and held on to him like he was her anchor.

  Uncertain as to the cause, and unwilling to let her go while she was this upset, he held her close, using his body to warm her, his hands stroking her back.

  Finally, after several minutes, she calmed and pushed against his chest.

  He loosened his hold, but only so far. She was going to talk if he had to make love to her a hundred times.

  “It never made sense,” she mumbled.

  “What never made sense?” he asked, tilting her head up so he could see her expression.

  “You and me.”

  “Bullshit.”

  She gave him a hollow-sounding laugh. “No, really. You’re the hottest guy I’ve ever seen, smart, too, and you wanted me? A geeky girl who likes puzzles, popcorn, and prefers working with the dead. We’re not even in the same league.”

  “You’re the one out of my league,” he said, kissing her softly. “I’m just a washed-up football player. You’re a doctor with more brains than any one person should have and top it all off, you look like a wet dream come to life.”

  “I do not.”

  “Do so.”

  “My nose is too big and my lips are, well, too big, too.”

  “Your nose is perfect and your lips…” He was hard again just thinking about her lips. “I fantasize about having them around my cock.” He thrust one leg between hers and turned them so he was on top again. “Your breasts make my mouth water. Especially since I can make you come just from sucking your nipples.”